1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an integrated management system and method for controlling multi-type air conditioners, and more particularly, to an integrated management system and method for controlling multi-type air conditioners which is capable of detecting a change in information about operation states of at least one air conditioner group and integrally controlling the operation of the at least one air conditioner group based on the detected result.
2. Description of the Background Art
With a recent increase in the use of air conditioning systems, air conditioning systems are now used in most buildings and homes. As one type of air conditioning system, so-called “multi-type air conditioners” include indoor units disposed in each room of a home or in each office in an office building, and an outdoor unit shared by and connected to the indoor units.
An air conditioner group denotes a system having a plurality of air conditioners, and an air conditioner system denotes a system for managing at least one air conditioner group.
The air conditioner system may include a local controller which detects operation states of a plurality of air conditioner groups and, according to the detection, controls the plurality of air conditioner groups via a gateway.
Recently, an integrated management system for controlling the multi-type air conditioners is being developed to integrally manage at least one air conditioner system from a distance.
Such integrated management system for controlling the multi-type air conditioners may collect operation state information related to the air conditioner system having the multi-type air conditioners and setting information related to the local controller for the multi-type air conditioners so as to store and manage such information in a database. Thus, when the air conditioner system is not working properly, the integrated management system can automatically detect the malfunction or error and rapidly repair it.
Here, while communicating with the plurality of air conditioners, the local controller collects operation status information related to a plurality of indoor units and outdoor units that are connected to the multi-type air conditioners.
The data collected by the local controller include various types of data such as operation state information related to the indoor units (e.g., on/off mode, wind direction, amount of wind, temperature, lock/unlock mode, etc.) and operation state information related to the outdoor units (e.g., states of a compressor, fan speed, valve lock, temperature, etc.).
In the operation of the related art integrated management system for controlling the multi-type air conditioners, the local controller collects state information related to the multi-type air conditioners and transmits the collected state information to a remote integrated management system at every specific interval.
However, the data to be transmitted at every specific interval include all operation state information, thereby increasing an amount of data. Accordingly, when such data is transmitted, a network load would increase. Also, since the amount of data to be stored in the remote integrated management system would increase, CPU and disk I/O loads used for storing data in and searching a database server would increase.
That is, the related art integrated management system for controlling the multi-type air conditioners periodically transmits all collected information related to the multi-type air conditioners to the remote integrated management system. Accordingly, it is difficult to manage the database, and the CPU and disk I/O loads to process all of such information increase.